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Utricularia odorata is a terrestrial tropical plant. It
grows in wet grassland in Southeast Asia and Northern
Australia. It will begin to grow and flower as the wet
season progresses.
The flowers are yellow with palate bearing fine black
lines. True to its name, the flower of Utricularia
odorata has a pleasant aroma. It is also one of the
longest lasting flowers. A single scape last for several
months.
The bladder-trap is unique to the Utricularia, giving
them their nickname of Bladderwort. Utricularia has no
true root system. They form creeping or floating, thin,
hair-like stems that extended away from the main body of
the plant. The bladder-traps are held on these stems. The
traps are underground and are too small to hand feed. So,
it has to catch it's own microscopic prey. Thin, filament-like
hairs protrude from the trap door. These serve as guides
to send the prey toward the door. These plants use low
pressure inside the chamber vs. high pressure outside.
When a bug activates the hairs, the door opens quickly,
forcing the victim into the low-pressure digestion area.
The water is pumped out and the mulcilage seal is re-established.
The plant now secrets digestive juices to break down the
captured prey and absorb the mineral rich fluid. Trapping
usually occurs within 1/50 of a second. It is believed
that glands found around the closed entry may also
secrete an attractant that may aid in luring prey.
Hardiness zone 11, (4°C/40°F) in Winter. Utricularia
odorata favour sunny locations in permanently wet open
ground. The infertile soil is a perfect medium for them
to grow. The sand is almost completely depauperate of any
nutrients, giving them ideal conditions to grow. In
captivity, they grow well in pure sphagnum moss as well
as in a standard 1:1 peat moss/sand mix. Like other
carnivorous plants, they do require pure water and can be
killed by fertilizer in the soil. In nature, water levels
are usually near or even a little above the soil surface.
Utricularia prefer frequent overhead watering, at least
once a day in Summer, and once every few days in Winter.
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